United States of America: Strategy Analyst

Requisition ID: req1055

Job Title: Strategy Analyst

Sector: Strategy

Employment Category: Regular

Employment Type: Full-Time

Location: USA-New York, NY - HQ

Job Description

Background/IRC Summary:

The International Rescue Committee is at a critical juncture. A leading global humanitarian organization since its inception at the request of Albert Einstein in 1933, the IRC is modernizing, with a new strategic mission and vision, and a Strategy Unit that is leading the charge in turning that vision into reality.

As a core member of the Strategy Unit you will enable this organization of more than 12,000 staff to overcome the biggest hurdles it faces in putting its new strategy into action. Whether it is supporting the development and execution of a strategy for the IRC's advocacy, or helping the organization to measure and improve the performance of its operations, your work will spread far and wide within the organization and ultimately impact the lives of those who interact with the IRC - 18 million people worldwide in places affected by war and disaster.

You will be expected to find solutions. You will persuade and influence, create and innovate, and use structured thinking and evidence to solve problems where there is no pre-defined methodology. Focusing on the highest priority initiatives of the organization and the CEO, you will build relationships across the IRC and deliver high quality results at a pace a leading private sector organization would be proud of.

This is a demanding role - you will be expected to work hard and to learn and grow quickly. Ultimately the measure of your success will be your impact - the lasting benefit you bring to the organization through your contributions.

Job Overview/Summary:

The Strategy Analyst will provide strategic planning and problem-solving support to the organization, as part of the Strategic Projects team within the Strategy Unit. He or she will be part of a small, tight-knit project team that will quickly break down problems and iterate rapidly towards evidence-based solutions, creating buy-in and building partnerships along the way. This is a challenging position which requires strong strategic problem-solving skills, excellent interpersonal skills, a high level of personal initiative and the ability to work well in a distributed, multicultural, fast-paced environment.

This role can be considered equivalent in nature to entry-level consulting positions at strategy consulting firms, for example the Business Analyst role at McKinsey, the Associate role at BCG or the Associate Consultant role at Bain. The Strategy Analyst will play a similar role in the Strategic Projects team (which is set up to mirror this type of environment), albeit as part of a smaller team. They will be responsible for specific components of a project, conducting specific pieces of analysis that feed into the bigger problem that the team is solving. The main difference to these bigger contexts is that the small team entails more flexibility in roles (acting up and down as needed) and potentially working across more than one project at a time.

The role will report into one of the two Senior Advisors on the Strategic Projects team. The Senior Advisors lead the day-to-day project execution (similar to Engagement Manager, Project Leader roles at consulting firms) and will provide close supervision, coaching and support.

The role would suit one of two profiles particularly well:

• On the more senior end of the spectrum, this role would suit someone in a pre-MBA or immediately post-MBA position at a management consulting firm, who is ready to bring the skills they have learned from that position into a nonprofit environment and continue to learn and grow in a small team of ex-consultants
• On the more junior end of the spectrum, this role would suit someone early in their professional career with outstanding academic credentials, exceptional analytical skills, a clear interest in the humanitarian space, and the capacity and willingness to be coached into the specifics of the role and the problem-solving methodology used by consulting firms

Major Responsibilities:

• Engage closely with staff across the IRC who are responsible for planning and implementing change, provide problem-solving support, and facilitate decision-making and consensus-building as part of a team
• Personally drive specific components of a problem as part of a team, generating critical insights and tailoring and delivering effective communications to drive change, through the proactive solicitation and use of information, judgment, problem-solving methodologies and sector knowledge
• Proactively pursue sources of data and insight needed to complete analysis and ensure pace of progress and quality of analysis are maintained in line with the expectations of the supervisor and manager
• Collaborate closely and regularly with the supervisor to align on work planning, iterate on solutions and find workarounds as needed
• Contribute effectively to the work-streams of others on the team as required, and to solving the broader problem being solved by the team as a whole, through full-team problem-solving
• Closely manage progress against objectives, highlighting roadblocks as soon as they arise and taking full personal ownership for high-quality timely delivery
• Give and receive regular developmental feedback and contribute actively to creating a positive, focused and effective team environment
• Adopt a learning mindset and take personal responsibility for continuous performance improvement, and for supporting the ongoing growth and success of the Strategic Projects team against its broader objectives

Key Working Relationships:

Position Reports to: Senior Advisor, Strategic Projects Other Internal and/or external contacts:

Internal:

• Senior IRC stakeholders in leadership positions (likely mostly in group settings)

• IRC stakeholders in relevant departments at Officer and Manager levels (1:1 relationships common)

• Strategy Unit leadership (Director of Strategy Unit, VP of Strategy and Innovation)

• Strategy Unit team members

External:

• As needed

Job Requirements:

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent, with demonstrated high performance
• Exceptional analytical skills
• A results-driven approach to work, proven personal initiative and an ability to work proactively and with a strong sense of urgency
• A strong focus on personal growth and development, and a willingness to regularly receive and act on performance feedback in pursuit of continuous professional growth
• Resilience in response to setbacks, and an ability to anticipate and overcome barriers to success
• A willingness to 'muck in' to achieve results in a small team
• A natural talent for evidence-based problem-solving, and a willingness to develop problem-solving skills
• A credible presence and strong ability to communicate with senior leaders
• Capability to manage and make progress against multiple simultaneous demands in short time frames, and to adapt to new challenges in a dynamic context with shifting priorities
• Ability to respond proactively and positively to ambiguity
• High level of comfort with MS Excel, Word and PowerPoint

Preferred Additional Requirements

• Experience in management consulting
• Professional experience in another highly analytic role
• Experience in a humanitarian or development organization, or similar
• Experience interacting and communicating effectively with members of a complex organization at multiple levels
• An MBA or a Master's degree in international development, human rights or another field related to the IRC's work
• Knowledge of French or Arabic

Working Environment:

• Standard office work environment
• Some travel as needed

Please follow this link to apply: http://www.aplitrak.com/?adid=YXN0cmlkLm1hdGhldy40NDQzNy4zODMwQGlyY2NkLmFwbGl0cmFrLmNvbQ